Partner Bios

EDGAR CRUZ has been named Oklahoma’s Best Performing Artist/Acoustic Guitarist three years in a row and has received numerous civic acknowledgments for his contributions to various charitable events. Cruz performs over 200 concerts each year throughout the United States, Europe and South America, and he has been the headliner at the Chet Atkins Festival in Nashville, Tennessee since 1995. He is a strong icon at festivals throughout Oklahoma including Sunfest, Festival of the Arts, Paseo Festival, and Global Oklahoma. Cruz entrances his audiences with the precision, speed, and complexity with which his fingers strike the strings of the guitar to create a symphony of unique sounds.
http://www.edgarcruz.com/multimedia.html

PATRICK RILEY, a nationally recognized mask maker, arts educator and administrator, holds a Master in Art Education from the University of Oklahoma and is a specialist in arts integration. As a teacher and artists, he conveys a rich understanding of native cultures. His delightful and inspiring residencies offer a wide range of experiences from mask making to student designed and executed large-scale paintings. He served as Fine Arts Director and as a visual arts teacher in the Oklahoma City school system for many years. Recently retired, Riley is an Independent Visual Arts Consultant who conducts educational workshops on a variety of artistic topics and exhibits his Art at most current events.
http://www.okragraphics.com/Patrick_Art/index(30).html

SKIP HILL creates lyrical collage paintings and drawings that weave a rich tapestry of aesthetic styles, languages and philosophies rooted in cultures around the world. Embracing the African-influenced modernist idiom, Hill explores patterns, images and forms drawn from cultural sources as diverse as comic books, outsider folk art, tribal textiles, Japanese Ukiyo prints, Asian calligraphy, and Art History to produce an art that engages the viewer in a visually meditative experience. Hill's artistic influences are derived from accumulated memories, his religious studies, Asia, Art History, the African-American Experience, Folk Art, and the rich tapestry of cultures he has been exposed to in his relationships and his many travels. Hill's body of original paintings, drawings, murals and limited edition prints are in private collections and public spaces on both sides of the Atlantic. He has traveled, lived and exhibited throughout the United States, Europe, Southeast Asia and North Africa.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Skip-Hill/737007706

Café do Brazil, owned by ANA DAVIS and husband Larry Davis, is located right in the heart of the midtown renaissance and right across the street from the revitalized Plaza Court building. In 1994, Ana Davis and her brother Mario Paixao started a restaurant called “More than Muffins”. After her brother step out of the restaurant business, Ana rapidly changed the direction of the restaurant by changing the name and introducing some of her native cuisine. In 2005, Ana and her husband, decided to expand and move to the current location with anauthentic and exquisite Brazilian Menu. Café do Brazil was chosen as the “Best Latin Restaurant of OKC” in 2009. Davis is a valuable member of the 2011 Global Oklahoma committee and has been nominated by the Journal Record as “A woman of the Year” due to her contribution and dedication to the community.